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AS teenagers, a few more of them in their early 20s, they took a brave, collective decision to leave for military training abroad thereafter set about on a mission to liberate their country.

The mission looked forbidding as whites, having governed the country with an iron fist for decades, were generally feared. Through their brutality, deep segregation and a range of unjust laws, whites had cowed many locals to the extent that they held colonialism as inevitable.

That did not deter the teenagers from fighting for their motherland, braving snake bites, disease and weather elements. Some of them weren’t as lucky as they died in action. Others are still alive but lost limbs and suffered lifelong injuries.

They have led the country from independence at various levels and with much distinction. When duty called again in 2000, they led the people in reclaiming their land from whites. As many as 200 000 formerly landless blacks are now proud owners of the factor of production.

However, having done so much for their motherland, some war veterans are still living in abject poverty.

Indeed, there have been efforts to correct that. In the late 1990s, the Government paid each war veteran a lump sum for their role in the struggle as well as the injuries they suffered. They are also on Government pension and medical aid and so on. Some of them were allocated land during the land reform programme.

These efforts are commendable but it is unfortunate that a good number of war veterans need more by way of socio-economic empowerment.

It is with that in mind that President Mnangagwa on Saturday launched the Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Economic Empowerment Programmes.

The vehicles include the War Veterans Investment Corporation, a holding company wholly owned by war veterans through the Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Board. The company has seven subsidiaries — Veterans Agricultural Company, Veterans Mining Company, Veterans Financial Services, Veterans Health Services, Veterans Tourism Company, Veterans Property Development Company and Veterans Security Company.

The Government has already allocated five farms to the Veterans Agricultural Company in Mashonaland West (Zvimba), Mashonaland Central (Mazowe), Midlands (Kwekwe), Masvingo (Mwenezi) and Mashonaland East (Murehwa). The Veterans Mining Company has been allocated 21 mining claims covering 7 000 hectares. Furthermore, Government has availed space at Tugwi-Mukosi Dam to the Veterans Tourism Company to set up recreational facilities, while a fisheries permit will also be issued for fishing operations at Kariba Dam.

The Veterans Property Company will be allocated land to build low-cost houses. The Veterans Financial Company is also applying for banking and insurance licences.

“The operations of the Veterans Investment Corporation are expected to generate inflows into the Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Fund,” said the President.

“I, therefore, urge the board to take advantage of the Second Republic’s vision of a private sector-led economic development to grow the vision embodied in these initiatives. As we forge ahead and in keeping with the new culture of inclusion and leaving no one behind, the board must involve Veterans and persons with desired skills in the management of the Veterans Investment Corporation and other business subsidiaries.

This will ensure that the interests of the sector are well represented and that anticipated benefits accrue to the rank and file of the veterans of the liberation struggle.”

The Saturday launch followed the appointment in March by Defence and War Veterans Affairs Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri of the Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Board led by Major-General Gibson Mashingaidze (Rtd). Other board members are Cdes Irene Zindi, Evaristo Dzihwema (Rtd Major-General), Lieutenant-Colonel Getrude Moyo, Alex Mazinyane (Rtd Brigadier-General), Lameck Jackson, Remigio Makoni, Rido Mpofu, Tinaye Chigudu, Archibald Kufa, Susan Madzivadondo, Lifneth Moyo and Batsirai Musona.

The generality of war veterans have a lot of expectations and Cde Mashingaidze and his team have a huge task to meet those expectations.
We look forward to the board hitting the ground running in getting the administrative systems in place for the investment initiatives to take off. It is good that the Government has already laid a strong foundation for the board to begin its work with the five farms, mining claims and space for the Tugwi-Mukosi project already availed.

We are confident that Cde Mashingaidze and his team are able to manage the potentially lucrative assets they have been granted for the benefit of the cadres who sacrificed so much for the liberation and post-Independence development of their country.